(Monday, November 22, 1999) — Well it has finally happened. Congress has left town without further eroding our Second Amendment rights, at least for now.

The anti-gun juvenile crime bill is still deadlocked in a conference committee, with both sides blaming the other for inaction.

Truth be known, however, some Senate leaders wanted to force the bill out of conference recently. According to insiders on Capitol Hill, the Senate Republicans held a meeting on the bill– a number of them extolling the virtues of moving the bill forward.

But two senators stood up and insisted they would fight the anti-gun bill tooth and nail. Senators Bob Smith (R-NH) and Mike Enzi (R-WY) indicated they would filibuster the bill. So, the decision was made that it would not come up this session.

ACTION: Gun owners should thank those two men for standing for principle.

Chenoweth-Hage Reintroduces Bill (H.R. 3444) To Repeal Lautenberg Gun Ban

Yesterday, Rep. Helen Chenoweth-Hage (R-ID) reintroduced her very popular bill to repeal the misdemeanor gun ban.

Passed in 1996 as part of the omnibus spending bill, the Lautenberg ban would disarm people for offenses that include pushing, shoving (or in some cases, even yelling at) a family member. The language of the gun ban is so expansive that legitimate corporal punishment can be used– and has been used– to disarm unsuspecting parents.

Chenoweth-Hage’s bill would repeal the entire ban, unlike other proposals in Congress which only repeal the retroactive nature of the law. Those unfamiliar with the Lautenberg ban should see http://www.gunowners.org/kldvtb.htm on the GOA website.

H.R. 3444 currently has 19 cosponsors. During the Congressional recess, gun owners should ask their Representatives to cosponsor the bill.